Celebrities Who Have Been Arrested for Cannabis in 2017

Tracy Jerome Chisley

The general public is regularly fascinated with the lifestyles of celebrities. And with the possibility of more arrests to come, 2017 has brought us 19 famous faces that have had run-ins with law for drugs. Celebrity drug arrests aren’t anything new, but what was interesting this year was the number of marijuana offenses in comparison to other substances. Out of the 19 celebs arrested for drugs, 15 of them involved marijuana.As cannabis becomes increasingly popular and more citizens demand their right to it, the likelihood of such arrests should begin to lower as legalization spreads. Hopefully.

Those caught for non-cannabis offenses are as follows. Rose McGowan was arrested November 14th for felony possession of cocaine after traces of it were found in her wallet which was left at Dulles International airport earlier this year.Charlie Heaton, the ‘Stranger Things’ star, was denied entry into the US after cocaine was found in his baggage upon arriving at LAX.Yvonne Elliman-Alexander, the ‘If I Can’t Have You” singer, was arrested in Guam for possession of 8 ounces of meth and a paraphernalia pipe. Her husband, Allen Alexander, was also arrested for possession of three grams of marijuana. Rapper Shock G (Greg Jacobs) of ‘Digital Underground,’ was arrested forparaphernalia only, no substances involved.

All of the cannabis related offenses that took place in the US were in states that do not have any active medical or recreational cannabis laws in effect. This is with the exception(s) of Cassidy (Barry Reese). The New Jersey rapper was arrested on November 19th in Jersey City for possession of marijuana & paraphernalia along with Shanay Reese. Currently, New Jersey allows possession of up to 2 oz. of usable product. Cassidy was still arrested in front of his home and charged with possession after police followed up on a report of a parked van that reeked of marijuana. The judge remanded the charges to Jersey City Municipal Court where Cassidy’s situation will be handled as a ‘disorderly persons’ charge rather than as a criminal offense.

Another arrest did occur in California, a state with medical & recreational consumption laws. However, Sacramento Kings forward Zach Randolph must not have been aware of the specifics. Randolph was caught carrying marijuana with the intent to sell while on a federal public housing property in Los Angeles. In another case, Adrien Robinson, former New York Giants WR, was arrested for possession of more than 20 lbs. of cannabis & paraphernalia in Mifflinburg, PA on July 31st. While Pennsylvania does have a ’30 Day supply’ consumption law, it was clearly not meant for 20 lbs. worth within that timeframe. Mr. Robinson may possibly have a felony conviction as a result.

Musicians got the most arrests this year for cannabis related offenses. There were 8 total. This was followed by 4 NFL players, 4 Actors, 1 college football player, 1 NBA player & 1 comedian/radio personality. Of those arrested, 16 are men and 3 women. From a race standpoint, it’s 11 African Americans and 8 White. 17 of the offenses were conducted in the US, with a few being at US borders, while the remaining 2 were outside of the US (Dubai & Guam).

Here is a list of people arrested for cannabis related charges. Click their names for details.